Randy Klein, former Darien Democratic Town Committee chairman and husband of the towns former first selectwoman, speaks to The Hour on Thursday, October 20, 2016, about his race against Republican incumbent Terrie E. Wood in the 141st State House District. less

Randy Klein, former Darien Democratic Town Committee chairman and husband of the towns former first selectwoman, speaks to The Hour on Thursday, October 20, 2016, about his race against Republican incumbent ... more

Randy Klein, former Darien Democratic Town Committee chairman and husband of the towns former first selectwoman, speaks to The Hour on Thursday, October 20, 2016, about his race against Republican incumbent Terrie E. Wood in the 141st State House District. less

Randy Klein, former Darien Democratic Town Committee chairman and husband of the towns former first selectwoman, speaks to The Hour on Thursday, October 20, 2016, about his race against Republican incumbent ... more

“I do think that my background will lend itself to that, because look, I’ve been in business for 36 years,” Klein said. “If I wasn’t able to reach consensus and compromise, whether it’s customers, venders, employees, I mean, you go down the list, I would be out of business in three months. And I think my opponent is the antithesis of that.”

The Darien Democrat said he’s knocked on upward of 4,000 doors in the district since April and been told by residents that they’re tired of political polarization in Hartford.

If elected, Klein said he’ll work to further urban development and affordable housing to keep millennial college graduates in Connecticut and focus on the transportation infrastructure. He sees education, development and transportation as related.

“The thing that businesses are crying are for overwhelmingly is a first-class transportation infrastructure and we’ve let the ball drop over the last 30 or 40 years,” Klein said. “Look at what we’re dealing with here in Norwalk. We don’t have to walk to far to get to the Walk Bridge to see right in front of us. If you can’t move your people, your goods, your services in an efficient way, businesses that are here are going to think twice about moving. Businesses that are thinking about moving here may not think twice at all.”

Klein said he supports a transportation lock box to channel money toward infrastructure improvements. He said he also would like to see additional money allocated to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s 30-year transportation improvement plan.

He describes himself as fiscally “very conservative” and capable of finding savings through his experiences as a small businessman. On state employee pensions, he said Connecticut should explore moving employees in the highest benefit bracket to a lower tier by offering them a cash out. Such an offer could incentivize employees to pay down a mortgage, a student loan or invest in a business, he said.

“Whatever they want to do with it, it’s re-injecting that money back into the economy, so you kind of get a double bang for your buck,” Klein said.

Klein has been a Little League coach and sponsor of Darien Youth Hockey. He’s the husband of Evonne M. Klein, former Darien first selectwoman and current state housing commissioner.